Clothes dryer and control method thereof

Abstract

The present application relates to the technical field of clothes drying machines, and particularly provides a clothes drying machine and a control method thereof, aiming to solve the problem that the clothes drying effect is affected due to the inaccurate environment temperature obtained by the existing clothes drying machine. To this end, the clothes drying machine comprises a heat pump device, the heat pump device comprises a compressor, a condenser and an auxiliary heating device, the auxiliary heating device is arranged in a clothes drying channel of the clothes drying machine, based on the above structure, the clothes drying machine first obtains the interval duration from the last operation, then determines whether the surrounding environment of the clothes drying machine is excessively affected due to the operation of the clothes drying machine according to the interval duration, and then determines the environment temperature for the operation of the clothes drying machine again, and then the clothes drying machine controls the operation state of the auxiliary heating device according to the determined environment temperature for the operation of the clothes drying machine again, so as to control the operation state of the auxiliary heating device, match the operation state of the auxiliary heating device with the current required drying demand, and effectively ensure the drying effect of clothes.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of clothes drying machines, and particularly provides a clothes drying machine and a control method thereof. BACKGROUND

[0002] As a kind of household appliance that can quickly dry clothes, clothes drying machine can make people wear dry and comfortable clothes in humid environment, reduce the space used for airing and improve people's life quality, so it is more and more popular among users.

[0003] However, people have higher requirements for drying quality, speed, uniformity and energy consumption with the application of clothes drying machine, and heat pump clothes drying machine is the main product type in the existing clothes drying machine market due to its energy-saving advantage. The existing heat pump clothes drying machine controls the drying program according to the ambient temperature, however, when the user continuously uses the heat pump clothes drying machine, the heat pump clothes drying machine obtains inaccurate ambient temperature due to long use time, which has large error with the actual value, which can easily lead to the heat pump clothes drying machine executing mismatched drying program due to inaccurate ambient temperature, and further affect the drying effect of clothes, thus bringing poor user experience.

[0004] Correspondingly, there is a need for a new clothes drying machine and a control method thereof to solve the above technical problems. SUMMARY

[0005] The present application aims to solve the above technical problems, i.e., to solve the problem that the existing clothes drying machine affects the drying effect of clothes due to inaccurate ambient temperature.

[0006] In a first aspect, the present application provides a control method of a clothes drying machine, the clothes drying machine comprising a heat pump device, the heat pump device comprising a compressor, a condenser and an auxiliary heating device, the auxiliary heating device being arranged in a drying channel of the clothes drying machine, the control method comprising:

[0007] obtaining an interval duration of the clothes drying machine from the last operation;

[0008] determining an ambient temperature of the clothes drying machine for the next operation according to the interval duration;

[0009] controlling the operating state of the auxiliary heating device according to the ambient temperature of the clothes drying machine for the next operation.

[0010] In the preferred technical solution of the above control method, the step of "determining the ambient temperature of the clothes drying machine for the next operation according to the interval duration" comprises:

[0011] if the interval duration is greater than or equal to a preset interval duration, further obtaining the exhaust temperature of the compressor and the outlet temperature of the condenser;

[0012] According to the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature, an ambient temperature for the next operation of the clothes dryer is determined.

[0013] In the preferred technical solutions of the above control method, the step of "determining the ambient temperature for the next operation of the clothes dryer according to the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature" specifically comprises:

[0014] The ambient temperature for the next operation of the clothes dryer is a sum of a product of the exhaust temperature and a first coefficient, a product of the outlet temperature and a second coefficient, and a third coefficient,

[0015] The first coefficient, the second coefficient, and the third coefficient are constants.

[0016] In the preferred technical solutions of the above control method, the first coefficient and the second coefficient are determined in the following manner:

[0017] The exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature are compared in size;

[0018] According to the comparison result of the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature in size, the first coefficient and the second coefficient are selectively adjusted.

[0019] In the preferred technical solutions of the above control method, the step of "selectively adjusting the first coefficient and the second coefficient according to the comparison result of the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature in size" comprises:

[0020] If the exhaust temperature is greater than or equal to the outlet temperature, a difference between the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature is calculated;

[0021] According to the difference between the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature, the first coefficient and the second coefficient are adjusted.

[0022] In the preferred technical solutions of the above control method, the step of "selectively adjusting the first coefficient and the second coefficient according to the comparison result of the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature in size" further comprises:

[0023] If the exhaust temperature is less than the outlet temperature, the first coefficient and the second coefficient are not adjusted.

[0024] In the preferred technical solutions of the above control method, the step of "adjusting the first coefficient and the second coefficient according to the difference between the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature" specifically comprises:

[0025] The adjusted first coefficient is a product of a ratio of the difference between the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature to the exhaust temperature and the first coefficient; and / or

[0026] The adjusted second coefficient is a product of a difference between the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature and a ratio of the outlet temperature and the second coefficient.

[0027] In the preferred technical solution of the control method, the step of determining the ambient temperature at which the clothes dryer is to be operated again according to the interval duration further comprises:

[0028] If the interval duration is less than the preset interval duration, the ambient temperature at which the clothes dryer is to be operated again is the ambient temperature at which the clothes dryer was operated last time.

[0029] In the preferred technical solution of the control method, the step of controlling the operation state of the auxiliary heating device according to the ambient temperature at which the clothes dryer is to be operated again further comprises:

[0030] If the ambient temperature at which the clothes dryer is to be operated again is less than or equal to a first preset ambient temperature or the ambient temperature at which the clothes dryer is to be operated again is greater than or equal to a second preset ambient temperature, the auxiliary heating device is controlled to operate at a first preset heating power.

[0031] If the ambient temperature at which the clothes dryer is to be operated again is greater than the first preset ambient temperature and less than the second preset ambient temperature, the auxiliary heating device is controlled to operate at a second preset heating power.

[0032] The first preset heating power is less than the second preset heating power.

[0033] In another aspect, the present application also provides a clothes dryer, which comprises a controller capable of executing any of the above control methods.

[0034] In the case of adopting the above technical solution, the clothes dryer of the present application comprises a heat pump device, which comprises a compressor, a condenser and an auxiliary heating device. The auxiliary heating device is arranged in a drying channel of the clothes dryer. Based on the above arrangement, the clothes dryer of the present application first acquires an interval duration from the last operation of the clothes dryer, and then determines whether the ambient environment of the clothes dryer is excessively affected due to the operation of the clothes dryer according to the interval duration, and further determines the ambient temperature at which the clothes dryer is to be operated again. Then, the clothes dryer controls the operation state of the auxiliary heating device according to the determined ambient temperature at which the clothes dryer is to be operated again, so as to control the operation state of the auxiliary heating device to match the current drying demand, thereby effectively ensuring the drying effect of clothes. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0035] The preferred embodiments of the present application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0036] Figure 1is the main step flow chart of the control method of the present application;

[0037] Figure 2 is the specific step flow chart of the preferred embodiment of the control method of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0038] The preferred embodiments of the present application are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that these embodiments are only used to explain the technical principles of the present application, and are not intended to limit the protection scope of the present application. Those skilled in the art can make adjustments as needed to adapt to specific application occasions. For example, the clothes dryer described in the present application can be a heat pump dryer or a washer-dryer, which is not limited. Those skilled in the art can set the application object of the control method of the present application according to the actual use requirements. Such changes related to the application object do not deviate from the basic principles of the present application and belong to the protection scope of the present application.

[0039] It should be noted that in the description of the preferred embodiments, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "connection", "connection" should be understood broadly, for example, it can be mechanical connection, electrical connection, direct connection, indirect connection through intermediate medium, and internal connection of two elements, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation of the present application. In addition, the terms "first", "second", "third" are only for descriptive purposes, and those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in the present application according to the specific circumstances.

[0040] In addition, it should be noted that in the description of the present application, although the steps of the control method of the present application are described in a specific order in the present application, these orders are not limited. Those skilled in the art can perform the steps in different orders without deviating from the basic principles of the present application.

[0041] Specifically, the clothes dryer of the present application comprises a heat pump device, the heat pump device comprises a compressor, a condenser and an auxiliary heating device, wherein the compressor and the condenser are connected through a refrigerant circulation loop to achieve heat dissipation purpose; the auxiliary heating device is arranged in a drying passage of the clothes dryer, and the drying passage is communicated with a drying cavity of the clothes dryer for placing clothes to be dried, so as to effectively assist in drying clothes and improve the drying efficiency and effect of clothes.

[0042] It should be noted that the present application does not make any limitation on the specific structure of the compressor, the condenser and the auxiliary heating device, for example, the compressor can be a fixed frequency compressor or a variable frequency compressor, the condenser can be a fin heat exchanger or a shell and tube heat exchanger, and the auxiliary heating device can be a heating pipe or a drying fan with heating function, which are not limited, and those skilled in the art can set them according to actual conditions. In addition, it should be noted that the present application also does not make any limitation on the specific structure of the clothes dryer, and those skilled in the art can set it according to actual conditions.

[0043] Further, the clothes dryer further comprises a temperature sensor and a controller, the temperature sensor can be used to detect the ambient temperature, or can be used to detect the exhaust temperature of the compressor or the outlet temperature of the condenser, which are not limited, and those skilled in the art can understand that the specific type, structure, number and position of the temperature sensor are not limited, and those skilled in the art can set them according to actual conditions.

[0044] The controller can obtain the detection result of the temperature sensor, and the controller can also control the running state of the clothes dryer, for example, control the running power of the auxiliary heating device, which are not limited. Those skilled in the art can understand that the present application does not make any limitation on the specific structure and model of the controller, and the controller can be the original controller of the clothes dryer or a controller specially set for the control method of the present application, and those skilled in the art can set the structure and model of the controller according to actual use requirements.

[0045] Firstly, refer to Figure 1 , Figure 1 is the main step flow chart of the control method of the present application. As Figure 1 shown, based on the clothes dryer described in the above embodiment, the control method of the present application mainly comprises the following steps:

[0046] S1: obtaining the interval time length of the clothes dryer from the last running;

[0047] S2: determining the ambient temperature of the clothes dryer running again according to the interval time length;

[0048] S3: controlling the running state of the auxiliary heating device according to the ambient temperature of the clothes dryer running again.

[0049] Firstly, in step S1, the controller acquires the interval duration of the clothes dryer from the last operation. Then, in step S2, the controller determines whether the ambient temperature around the clothes dryer is greatly affected by the operation of the clothes dryer according to the interval duration, and further determines the ambient temperature for the re-operation of the clothes dryer.

[0050] It should be noted that the present application does not make any limitation on the specific control logic of step S2, for example, when the interval duration is within a first duration range, the ambient temperature is determined according to the detection result of the temperature sensor arranged in the environment where the clothes dryer is located, when the interval duration is within a second duration range, the ambient temperature is determined according to the operation condition of the clothes dryer itself, etc., which are not restrictive, and the person skilled in the art can set according to the actual situation.

[0051] Further, in step S3, the controller controls the operation state of the auxiliary heating device according to the ambient temperature for the re-operation of the clothes dryer. The controller can control the on-off state of the auxiliary heating device, can control the operation duration of the auxiliary heating device, can control the heating power of the auxiliary heating device, etc., which are not restrictive, and the person skilled in the art can set according to the actual situation.

[0052] Next, referring to Figure 2 , Figure 2 is a specific step flow chart of the preferred embodiment of the control method of the present application. As shown in Figure 2 , based on the clothes dryer described in the above embodiment, the control method of the preferred embodiment of the present application comprises the following steps:

[0053] S101: acquiring the interval duration of the clothes dryer from the last operation;

[0054] S102: determining whether the interval duration is greater than or equal to a preset interval duration; if the determination result is yes, executing step S103; if the determination result is no, executing step S105;

[0055] S103: further acquiring the discharge temperature of the compressor and the outlet temperature of the condenser;

[0056] S104: the ambient temperature for the re-operation of the clothes dryer is the sum of the product of the discharge temperature and a first coefficient, the product of the outlet temperature and a second coefficient, and a third coefficient;

[0057] S105: the ambient temperature for the re-operation of the clothes dryer is the ambient temperature for the last operation of the clothes dryer;

[0058] S106: determining whether the ambient temperature for the next running of the clothes dryer is greater than the first preset ambient temperature and less than the second preset ambient temperature; if the result of the determination is no, executing step S107; if the result of the determination is yes, executing step S108;

[0059] S107: controlling the auxiliary heating device to run at the first preset heating power;

[0060] S108: controlling the auxiliary heating device to run at the second preset heating power.

[0061] Firstly, in step S101, the controller acquires the interval duration from the last running of the clothes dryer. Then, the controller determines whether the ambient temperature around the clothes dryer is greatly affected by the running of the clothes dryer according to the interval duration, and further determines the ambient temperature for the next running of the clothes dryer.

[0062] It should be noted that the present application does not limit the specific control logic of the above steps, for example, when the interval duration is within the first duration range, the ambient temperature is determined according to the detection result of the temperature sensor arranged in the environment where the clothes dryer is located, when the interval duration is within the second duration range, the ambient temperature is determined according to the running condition of the clothes dryer itself, etc., which are not limiting, and the person skilled in the art can set according to the actual situation.

[0063] As a preferred embodiment, in step S102, the controller determines whether the interval duration is greater than or equal to a preset interval duration; if the result of the determination is yes, it means that the clothes dryer may have just ended running, and the ambient temperature obtained by running the clothes dryer again will be affected by the last running, then the controller executes step S103; that is, if the interval duration is greater than or equal to the preset interval duration, the discharge temperature of the compressor and the outlet temperature of the condenser are further acquired; and the ambient temperature for the next running of the clothes dryer is determined according to the discharge temperature and the outlet temperature. If the result of the determination is no, it means that the clothes dryer is far away from the last running, and the clothes dryer or the environment where it is located is not greatly affected by the last running, then the controller executes step S105; that is, if the interval duration is less than the preset interval duration, the ambient temperature for the next running of the clothes dryer is the ambient temperature for the last running of the clothes dryer.

[0064] It should be noted that the ambient temperature of the last operation of the clothes dryer can be obtained according to the temperature sensor arranged in the environment, or can be determined according to the exhaust temperature of the compressor and the outlet temperature of the condenser, which is not limited, and those skilled in the art can set it according to the actual situation. In addition, it should be noted that the present application also does not make any limitation on the specific setting value of the preset interval time, and those skilled in the art can set it according to the actual situation of the last operation of the clothes dryer or the actual environment of the clothes dryer.

[0065] As a preferred embodiment, in step S104, the step of "determining the ambient temperature of the next operation of the clothes dryer according to the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature" specifically includes that the ambient temperature of the next operation of the clothes dryer is the product of the exhaust temperature and the first coefficient, the product of the outlet temperature and the second coefficient, and the third coefficient, wherein the first coefficient, the second coefficient and the third coefficient are constants. Among them, the third coefficient is obtained by repeatedly testing the clothes drying program of the clothes dryer with different interval times.

[0066] Regarding the first coefficient and the second coefficient, in the present embodiment, the determination method of the first coefficient and the second coefficient is that the controller first compares the size of the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature, and then selectively adjusts the first coefficient and the second coefficient according to the comparison result of the size of the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature. That is, the initial setting value of the first coefficient and the second coefficient is obtained by repeatedly testing the clothes drying program of the clothes dryer with different interval times, and then the controller selectively adjusts the first coefficient and the second coefficient according to the comparison result of the size of the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature.

[0067] Specifically, if the exhaust temperature is greater than or equal to the outlet temperature, which indicates that the dryer has been running for a long time, to reduce the error of the acquired ambient temperature, the controller calculates the difference between the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature, and then adjusts the first coefficient and the second coefficient according to the difference between the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature. Preferably, the adjusted first coefficient is the product of the difference between the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature and the exhaust temperature and the first coefficient; in addition, the adjusted second coefficient is the product of the difference between the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature and the outlet temperature and the second coefficient, so as to effectively reduce the error of the ambient temperature determined according to the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature due to the long running time of the dryer, and further effectively ensure that the dryer can control the operating state of the auxiliary heating device according to a more accurate ambient temperature, and effectively ensure the drying effect and efficiency of the clothes. Further, conversely, if the exhaust temperature is less than the outlet temperature, which indicates that the dryer has not been running for a long time, and the ambient temperature determined according to the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature is relatively accurate, the controller does not adjust the first coefficient and the second coefficient.

[0068] Further, the controller controls the operating state of the auxiliary heating device according to the ambient temperature at which the dryer is running again. The controller can control the on-off state of the auxiliary heating device, can control the running time of the auxiliary heating device, can control the heating power of the auxiliary heating device, etc., which are not limited, and a person skilled in the art can set according to the actual situation.

[0069] In the preferred embodiment, the step of "controlling the operating state of the auxiliary heating device according to the ambient temperature at which the dryer is running again" in steps S106-S108 specifically includes: determining whether the ambient temperature at which the dryer is running again is greater than the first preset ambient temperature and less than the second preset ambient temperature, if the determination result is no, executing step S107; if the determination result is yes, executing step S108.

[0070] Specifically, in step S107, if the ambient temperature at which the dryer is running again is less than or equal to the first preset ambient temperature or the ambient temperature at which the dryer is running again is greater than or equal to the second preset ambient temperature, the controller controls the auxiliary heating device to run at a first preset heating power. Further, in step S108, if the ambient temperature at which the dryer is running again is greater than the first preset ambient temperature and less than the second preset ambient temperature, the auxiliary heating device is controlled to run at a second preset heating power; wherein the first preset heating power is less than the second preset heating power.

[0071] In the case that the ambient temperature at which the clothes dryer is running again is less than or equal to the first preset ambient temperature, it indicates that the ambient temperature at which the clothes dryer is running is low. If the running power of the auxiliary heating power is high, the clothes dryer will have more condensation on its outside due to a large temperature difference between the inside and the outside, which reduces the user's experience. Therefore, in the case that the ambient temperature at which the clothes dryer is running again is less than or equal to the first preset ambient temperature, the controller controls the auxiliary heating device to run at a relatively low running power. In addition, in the case that the ambient temperature at which the clothes dryer is running again is greater than or equal to the second preset ambient temperature, it indicates that the ambient temperature at which the clothes dryer is running is high. In order to reduce the drying energy consumption of the clothes dryer, the controller controls the auxiliary heating device to run at a relatively low running power, so as to effectively utilize the objective conditions of the environment in which the clothes dryer is located, which are conducive to drying clothes. Further, in the case that the ambient temperature at which the clothes dryer is running again is greater than the first preset ambient temperature and less than the second preset ambient temperature, it indicates that the ambient temperature at which the clothes dryer is located is in a medium state. The clothes dryer cannot effectively utilize the objective conditions of the environment in which it is located, and the outside of the clothes dryer will not produce condensation during operation. Therefore, in order to quickly dry the clothes, the controller controls the auxiliary heating device to run at a second preset heating power greater than the first preset heating power, so as to effectively ensure the drying efficiency and drying effect of the clothes and improve the user's experience.

[0072] So far, the technical solutions of the present application have been described in combination with the preferred embodiments shown in the drawings, but those skilled in the art can easily understand that the protection scope of the present application is obviously not limited to these specific embodiments. Those skilled in the art can make equivalent changes or replacements to the related technical features without departing from the principles of the present application, and the technical solutions after these changes or replacements will fall within the protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A control method for a clothes dryer, characterized in that, The clothes dryer includes a heat pump unit, which comprises a compressor, a condenser, and an auxiliary heating device. The auxiliary heating device is disposed within the drying channel of the clothes dryer. The control method includes: Obtain the time interval between the last operation of the dryer; The steps for determining the ambient temperature at which the dryer will run again based on the specified interval include: If the interval duration is greater than or equal to the preset interval duration, then the exhaust temperature of the compressor and the outlet temperature of the condenser are further obtained; The steps for determining the ambient temperature for the dryer to run again based on the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature specifically include: the ambient temperature for the dryer to run again is the sum of the product of the exhaust temperature and a first coefficient, the product of the outlet temperature and a second coefficient, and a third coefficient. Wherein, the first coefficient, the second coefficient, and the third coefficient are constants; The operating status of the auxiliary heating device is controlled according to the ambient temperature at which the dryer is run again.

2. The control method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first coefficient and the second coefficient are determined as follows: Compare the magnitudes of the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature; Based on the comparison between the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature, the first coefficient and the second coefficient are selectively adjusted.

3. The control method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The step of "selectively adjusting the first coefficient and the second coefficient based on the comparison result of the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature" includes: If the exhaust temperature is greater than or equal to the outlet temperature, then the difference between the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature is calculated. The first coefficient and the second coefficient are adjusted based on the difference between the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature.

4. The control method according to claim 3, characterized in that, The step of "selectively adjusting the first coefficient and the second coefficient based on the comparison result of the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature" further includes: If the exhaust temperature is lower than the outlet temperature, the first coefficient and the second coefficient are not adjusted.

5. The control method according to claim 4, characterized in that, The step of "adjusting the first coefficient and the second coefficient based on the difference between the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature" specifically includes: The adjusted first coefficient is the product of the difference between the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature and the ratio of the exhaust temperature to the first coefficient; and / or The adjusted second coefficient is the product of the difference between the exhaust temperature and the outlet temperature and the ratio of the outlet temperature to the second coefficient.

6. The control method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The step of "determining the ambient temperature for the dryer to run again based on the interval duration" further includes: If the interval is less than the preset interval, the ambient temperature at which the dryer runs again is the ambient temperature at which the dryer ran the last time.

7. The control method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that, The step of "controlling the operating status of the auxiliary heating device according to the ambient temperature when the dryer is run again" specifically includes: If the ambient temperature at which the dryer is run again is less than or equal to the first preset ambient temperature, or if the ambient temperature at which the dryer is run again is greater than or equal to the second preset ambient temperature, then the auxiliary heating device is controlled to operate at the first preset heating power. If the ambient temperature at which the dryer is running again is greater than the first preset ambient temperature but less than the second preset ambient temperature, then the auxiliary heating device is controlled to operate at the second preset heating power. Wherein, the first preset heating power is less than the second preset heating power.

8. A clothes dryer, characterized in that, The dryer includes a controller capable of performing the control method according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

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